| polyphyletic | Composed of members that originated, independently, from more than one evolutionary line. Compare: monophyletic. (09 Oct 1997) |
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| polyphyletic theory | In haematology, the theory that blood cells are derived from several different stem cells, depending on the particular cell type. Synonym: polyphyletic theory. Origin: poly-+ G. Phyle, tribe (05 Mar 2000) |